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Back in June, Cinespia (an outdoor movie screening organization in Los Angeles), hosted a screening of To Catch A Thief (1955). The film is famously shot on the French Riviera. To advertise the event, they posted this picture of a seating arrangement and wrote that there would be a photo booth:

Is there anything more gorgeous? Is there? Even though this picture just scrolled by me, it creeped into my subconscious and inspired me to plan my own trip to the French Riviera (in three weeks!).

Well, today on Conde Nast Traveler they posted a picture of the Il San Pietro di Positano Hotel in Positano, Italy:

Photo: Dustin Cohen

.....and wrote that they make "a perfectly simple burrata dish with zucchini, mint, and garlic", so obviously I had to investigate further.....and discovered that the bench is real!!!!! And it isn't in France! It's in Italy!

And seeing as I don't leave a stone unturned, this is the burrata (although a different preparation)!!!!

Photo by Frank Prisinzano, who can clearly die happy because he has eaten an enormous amount of spectacular looking food http://frankprisinzano.tumblr.com/

So after dealing with a wicked case of travel envy, I decided to to dig around the internet to check out some Cinespia photo booth pics, and discovered that they didn't recreate this bench at all! False Advertising!!!!!

The Great Beauty - Rich lady's apartment where everything is expensive, but there is little of it.

I know The Great Beauty (2013) is supposed to be a really good movie, but......... I didn't enjoy it.

However, I do like this tile floor. The pattern is the right balance of geometric and floral. The tiles themselves have slight color disparities, meaning they are either old or a vintage style. There is a dark band around the base of the walls, which frames the pattern and highlights the scale of the room.

Just watched The Escape Artist, an awesome lawyer/stalker British mini series. Could someone explain to me what "making silk" means?

Anywho, in the first episode David Tennant leaves his cell phone in a bathroom at a work event (right by the sink), and something about the bathroom really spoke to me. I love the band of green. And I love how the tiles have that slightly askew vintage quality. I love how the sinks are urinal-esque the way they jut out. And even the soap dispensers are working for me (something I never thought I would say).

I loved the picture gallery on Remodelista on Jagged Edges. I have noticed this trend for a while, but didn't have the right words to express it. I always thought of it as highlighting raw materials, but jagged edges is better.

As soon as I get a chance to redo a bathroom or kitchen, I am going to work in subway tile and dark grout.

This style is called "subway tile" because it was used in the New York City subway stations in the early twentieth century. It is simple, classic, and inexpensive. It does not have to be paired with dark grout, but I like the added geometry of it. And I think it would be great for a bathroom because dark grout can hide a lot of scum.

Jeffrey Alan Marks used this look on the show Million Dollar Decorators when he redesigned the bathroom of his Crossfit gym. He said he likes the look because it reminds him of a 50's locker room in a boys prep school.

This is now my fifth post about the FX show Tyrant, and I already know it won't be my last. Ridiculous! I should just rename this blog Titillating Tyrant and devote the whole things to screen shots and fan fiction.

Ex: Once upon a time two hot young Americans sat in in front of an elaborately tiled wall.....

I just finished episode ten and there were two new sets that need to be mentioned.

Tyrant: Season 1, Episode 10 - All marble bathroom. This is a room fit for two ignorant american princesses.

Tyrant: Season 1, Episode 10 - No need to look at your watch Mrs. Al-Fayeed. You are already in paradise.

When shiny black is used in decor, you run the risk of coming off as goth or glam or too modern or american psycho. But the same doesn't go for matte black. When that shiny surface is stripped away, you are left with something warm and velvety.

Check out how it is used on doors, walls, furniture, tile, hardware...Sky's the limit!

My friend took me on an urban-hike through Hollywoodland a while back, based off of the book Secret Stairs, by Charles Fleming. I then took Hillary on the same hike, and we oohed and aahed over everything.

A few days ago, I saw Vermeer's The Art of Painting at the Kunsthistorisches Museum museum in Vienna. It got me thinking about checkerboard floors, and how they are timeless.

These floors are both casual and formal, classic and contemporary, simple and bold, and on and on. They work in your garage, in a ball room, and in your grandma's house. They even look good in linoleum.

You can do them in tile, marble, wood, paint, carpet....sky's the limit.

When I was at the LAX International Terminal two weeks ago, I snapped this picture of the floor. It was a jewel tone terrazzo, and something about it really grabbed me.

I would love to use it as a subtle accent color somewhere. Maybe someplace with white walls and lots of natural materials (wood, fiber, etc). If it was paired with colorful walls and furniture, the whole thing could go in a bad direction (i.e. 90's arcade )

Terrazzo is a composite material, poured in place or precast. It consists of marble/quartz/granite/glass/etc and mixed with something cement-like. Terrazzo is cured and then ground and polished to a smooth surface. It is extremely durable, and that is why it can be found in airports and malls, but it also looks great.

Hillary and I first got into terrazzo when we visited the Virginia Robinson House and Gardens in Beverly Hills. There is a terrazzo veranda. The home is one of the original homes of Beverly Hills and has an incredible garden. The tours are free with a reservation.